Long Distance Quantum Teleportation is Reality

Researchers in multiple locations around the globe have successfully teleported photons across distances greater than 100km. We aren’t ready to beam people up to the moon for a gravity-free lunar getaway just yet, but these recent breakthroughs are a monumental step in the right direction.

The technique used isn’t teleportation in the traditional Star Trek sense, it is an implementation of quantum entaglement. The photon being teleported isn’t moved anywhere. Essentially, its information is copied perfectly and instantaneously to another photon at an intended destination. Quantum entanglement allows us to send and receive information across seemingly impossible distances without any error or delay whatsoever.

Using a new laser technology that ensures the laser beam remains focused and does not disperse, scientists are paving the way for a global quantum network, the next evolutionary step of the internet. A quantum network

could form the backbone of an internet populated by quantum computers. In theory, each quantum processor/computer connected to the quantum network could be instantly linked to every other computer via an entangled pair of photons.

Quantum teleportation also redefines privacy. Because it is impossible to view an entangled particle, information that is entangled would be protected and guaranteed to be 100% secure. Quantum cryptography will replace password protection in the future.

In lieu of recent breakthroughs, Kirk’s classic catchphrase may need to be changed; “Entangle me up Scottie!”

I love to get lost. I have found that when you are lost, you are often heading in the right direction. A friend of mine once told me, "trying to find heart, we stumble through insanity." I desire freedom, growth, compassion, and empathy for the world, so these words are what I practice most often, regardless of how insane the world and its inhabitants seem. The only way to truly grow is by growing together.